As the US takes steps to restore a full rare earths supply chain onto American soil, a Chinese rare earths giant is embedding itself more deeply into the global supply chain.
China is currently the world’s dominant producer of rare earths, used in a wide range of advanced tech products, having taken that crown from the US in the 1990s. Because of their crucial role in the global economy, rare earths hold national security importance and their supply chain is as much a matter of geopolitics as business. As the US seeks to reduce dependence on China, China’s shoring up its dominance by more closely regulating its domestic resources, while at the same time expanding ties with businesses and projects worldwide. At the center of that global strategy is Shenghe Resources.